Disposable pill counting device

ABSTRACT

A disposable pill system including disposable pill counting tray to hold the a pill, a disposable spatula for use with the disposable pill counting tray, the disposable pill counting tray including a folding side wall to define an area for the pill.

PRIORITY

The present invention claims priority under 35 USC section 119 and provisional application Ser. No. 60/676,781 filed on May 2, 2005.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to health care, and more particularly to a pill counting device and method for using the pill counting device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Among other things, pharmacies commonly supply pills and other medication in prescription vials for holding their medication after the patients leave the pharmacy and their appointment with the doctor. Some patients when they come to the pharmacy with their prescription scripts are in pain and wish to take their medication immediately in accordance with the doctor's signa which is a Latin term to label the prescription according to dose, route of administration and frequency of use. The only concern of the patients under these circumstances is that the medication will provide some relief from the pain which they suffer and/or cure the ailment. Since the inception of the pharmacy, the tools that have been used to fill the tablet/capsule prescription drug order has been the pill counting tray and spatula. These tools are based on technology which has been in existence for more than 80 years. However, these devices are still used today by the pharmacy to manually fill, accurately count and dispense the medication into the prescription vials. This process is repeated over and over again with the same pill counting tray and spatula. There is no attempt to prevent the contamination of the next patient's medication by the medication of the previous patient. However, many patients are allergic to some kinds of medications, and it is possible for the patient's medication to become contaminated with the previous patient's medication and for the patient to sustain a serious allergic reaction without knowledge of the source of the contamination. The contamination could occur during the filling, counting and dispensing of the patient's medication.

FIG. 1 illustrates the traditional pill counting tray and spatula which are both non-disposable for repetitive use.

FIG. 2 illustrates another non-disposable pill counting tray with spatula.

FIG. 3 illustrates yet another non-disposable pill counting tray with non-disposable spatula.

U.S. Pat. No. Des 342,572 discloses a pill counter.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,851,649 to McCanney discloses a method and apparatus for manually counting pills.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,169,643 discloses a main body portion which has a platform surface and tapered side surfaces.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,722 discloses a counter including a bottom tray having adjoining upstanding sides.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,952,369 discloses a pill counter having a bottom which is flat and has the general shape of a truncated triangle.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,425 discloses a sorting tray which includes a substantially planar sorting surface bounded by upwardly and outwardly extending sidewalls.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,150,785 discloses a tray member including a bottom wall or base portion, a front wall, a rear wall a left side wall and a right side wall. Many patients are not sure if they are allergic to such drugs as penicillin or sulfa drugs. The only source of such an unidentified allergic reaction is that there has been a cross-contamination and evidenced by the patient's complaints of nausea and vomiting or diarrhea. Alternatively, the patient may simply feel depressed or crossed tempered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention eliminates the drug cross-contamination problem in the pharmacy environments. The present invention includes a device and method of pill dispensing in which the pill counting device is disposable. The disposable pill counting device includes a disposable pill counting tray which may have a built-in chute and a disposable spatula for directing the pills into the medication vial.

By virtue of the fact that the present invention relates to a disposable pill counting device, the present invention is an effective device to prevent the allergic reaction of the patients caused by drug cross-contamination. With the present invention, the patients are assured of receiving substantially pure medication from the pharmacy. It should be understood that the word ‘pill’ can be tablets, capsules or any other suitable type of pill medication which is dispensed as medication by the pharmacy.

By employing the disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula the drug cross-contamination and the resulting induced allergies can be avoided. The common medications that induce allergic reactions include antibiotics and some heart disease medications; however, there are many other drugs that can induce the allergic response. Consequently, the present invention is an important contribution to preventing these induced allergies.

The disposable pill counting tray and the disposable spatula are simpler in construction, cost-effective and more versatile in operation than other pill counting trays and spatulas. The disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula ensures safety for the patients. The disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula provides a new and contamination free device for each patient. By virtue of the disposable aspect of the disposable pill counting tray and disposable spatula, these devices can be used once and discarded.

The disposable pill dispensing device eliminates a drug cross contamination concerns of the community. Consequently, the disposable the dispensing device provides an important contribution and solves the problem of unrecognized allergic reactions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which, like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a pill counting tray and spatula;

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of a pill counting tray and spatula;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the pill counting tray and spatula;

FIGS. 4 a-c illustrate cross-sectional views of a pill counting tray of the present invention;

FIGS. 5 a-f illustrate cross-sectional views of the pill counting tray of the present invention;

FIGS. 6 a-f illustrate cross-sectional views of the pill counting tray of the present invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a spatula of the present invention;

FIG. 8 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the pill counting tray, the spatula and a vial of the present invention;

FIGS. 9 a-b illustrate perspective views of tray covers of the present invention;

FIGS. 10 a-c illustrate perspective views of the pill counting tray of the present invention;

FIGS. 11 a-c illustrate perspective views of the pill counting tray of the present invention;

FIG. 12 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the pill counting tray with adhesive tape;

FIG. 13 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the spatula of the present invention; and

FIG. 14 illustrates a perspective view of the counting tray of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 4 a illustrates a substantially flat disposable sheet 402 for forming the disposable or single use pill counting tray 405, and the flat disposable sheet 402 may be formed from disposable material such as reinforced nontoxic paperboard, cardboard, rigid paper or other suitable material. The disposable sheet 402 should be safe to use in the pharmaceutical industry and may be approved by the Federal Drug Agency (FDA). FIG. 4 a shows a substantially rectangle disposable sheet 402; however, other shapes of disposable sheet 402 are within the scope of the present invention. FIG. 4 b illustrates a fold line 408 which is formed along the periphery of the disposable sheet 402 and which is substantially parallel to the edges of the disposable sheet 402. The corner 412 of the disposable sheet 402 is punched out along the fold line 408 in order to form the folding sidewall 406. One corner may include a chute 407 which is formed by removing a portion of the disposable sheet 402 along the diagonal of the corner. The chute 407 may not have sidewalls. The fold line 408 may be a weakened area such as a line of punches or formed by coining to allow the folding sidewall 406 to be folded to an upright position and held upright by tape all around the sidewalls, substantially perpendicular to the base 404. The base 404 forms a substantially flat area for the pills to be dispensed and counted.

FIG. 4 c illustrates that the folding sidewall 406 has been moved from a first position substantially in the plane of the base 404 to a second position substantially perpendicular to the base 404 but may be outwardly sloping for nesting. FIG. 4 c illustrates that the chute 407 has no sidewall to allow the pills to be dispensed into the vial.

FIG. 5 illustrates a pill counting tray 505 formed in a right handed configuration to provide ease of dispensing pills by a right-handed user. The construction of the pill counting tray 505 is similar to the construction of the pill counting tray 405. FIG. 5 a discloses a disposable sheet 502. FIG. 5 b illustrates the base 504 to form a dispensing area, folding sidewall 506 defined by the fold line 508 and the edge of the disposable sheet 502. The corner 512 on three sides have punched out to allow the folding sidewall 506 to be joined. The chute 510 is formed in the lower right hand corner in order to facilitate a right-handed user. FIG. 5 d illustrates a side view of the disposable sheet 502, and FIG. 5 e illustrates a side view of the base 504 to form the dispensing area. FIG. 5f illustrates a side view of the pill counting tray 505.

FIG. 6 illustrates a pill counting tray 605 formed in a left handed configuration to provide ease of dispensing pills by a left-handed user. The construction of the pill counting tray 605 is similar to the construction of the pill counting tray 505. FIG. 6 a discloses a disposable sheet 602. FIG. 6 b illustrates the base 604 to form a dispensing area, folding sidewall 606 defined by the fold line 608 and the edge of the disposable sheet 602. The corner 612 on three sides have punched out to allow the folding sidewall 606 to be joined. The chute 610 is formed in the lower left hand corner of the pill counting tray 605 in order to facilitate a left-handed user. FIG. 6 d illustrates a side view of the disposable sheet 602, and FIG. 6 e illustrates a side view of the base 604 to form the dispensing area. FIG. 6 f illustrates a side view of the pill counting tray 605.

FIG. 7 illustrates a spatula 714 which may be formed from a disposable material such as reinforced nontoxic cardboard, rigid paper or other suitable material. The spatula 714 should be safe to use in the pharmaceutical industry and may be approved by the Federal drug agency (FDA).

FIG. 8 illustrates a system including the disposable pill counting tray 805 being used in conjunction with the disposable spatula 814. More particularly, FIG. 8 illustrates the pills 816 positioned on a disposable base 804 of the disposable pill counting tray 805. The disposable spatula 814 moves or slides the pills 816 into an opening 820 of the vial 818. The disposable spatula 814 includes a hook to remove the cotton insert from the pill bottle.

FIG. 9 a illustrates additional elements of the system including a tray cover 922 which could be constructed from clear plastic or any other suitable material to cover the pill counting tray. The edge 921 of the tray cover 922 may be outward sloping in order to prevent contamination of the disposable pill counting tray 405. FIG. 9b illustrates several tray covers 922 which have been stacked and nested together for convenient storage.

FIG. 10 a illustrates an additional pill counting tray 1005 which could be constructed from a disposable cardboard sheet or from plastic or other suitable material. The pill counting tray 1005 is substantially U-shaped including a first arm 1022 and a second arm 1024. The first arm 1022 could be used as a staging area for pill preparation while the second arm 1024 could be used as a dispensing area for the pills. The connecting area 1026 which connects the first arm 1022 and the second arm 1024 could be used as a pill pouring surface. This provides a convenient and separate area for various functions. The pill counting tray 1005 includes sidewall 1006 including seven side walls around the periphery of the pill counting tray 1005 except for an opening to accommodate the chute 1007.

FIG. 10 b illustrates that the sidewall 1006 is slightly outward sloping so that the pill counting tray 1005 can be stacked/nested with another pill counting tray 1005.

FIG. 10 c illustrates a tray cover 1028 to cover the pill counting tray 1005 to keep the pill counting tray 1005 free from contaminants and to keep the pills from falling out.

FIG. 11 a illustrates another embodiment of the present invention and illustrates the pill counting tray 1105 which includes a first arm 1122, a second arm 1124 and a connecting area 1126 to connect the first arm 1122 and the second arm 1124. The second arm 1124 extends beyond the end of the first arm 1122. The first arm 1122 can serve as a staging area for pills, and the second arm 1124 can serve as a dispensing area for dispensing the pills with the connecting area 1126 serving as a pill pouring area for pills.

FIG. 11 b illustrates stacked/nested pill counting tray 1105. The sidewall 1106 of the pill counting tray 1105 is slightly outward sloping in order that the pill counting tray 1005 can be stacked/nested with another pill counting tray 1005.

FIG. 11 c illustrates a tray cover 1128 to cover the pill counting tray 1105 to keep the pill counting tray 11 05 free from contaminants and to keep the pills from falling out.

FIG. 12 illustrates another embodiment disclosing a pill counting tray 1205 including single-sided adhesive tape 1230 or double sided adhesive tape for adhering the pill counting tray 1205 to a surface for the user or for attaching sidewalls together.

FIG. 13 illustrates a spatula 1332 which could be constructed from disposable materials such as paperboard, cardboard, or plastic and any other such suitable material.

FIG. 14 illustrates a pill counting tray 1405 which may be constructed from plastic and can be stacked or nested.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed. 

1. A pill counting device to hold a pill, comprising: a disposable pill counting tray; said disposable pill counting tray including a folding side wall to define an area for said pill.
 2. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 1, wherein said folding sidewall is outwardly sloping.
 3. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 2, wherein said folding sidewall is outwardly sloping to accept another pill counting tray to form a nested pair.
 4. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 1, wherein said pill counting tray is substantially U-shaped.
 5. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 4, wherein said U-shaped pill counting tray includes a first arm for a staging area for said pill
 6. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 5 wherein said U-shaped pill counting tray includes a second arm for forming a dispensing area for said pill.
 7. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 6, wherein said second arm extends beyond said first arm. 8 A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 1, wherein said pill counting tray is formed from cardboard.
 9. A disposable pill system; comprising: a disposable pill counting tray to hold the a pill, a disposable spatula for use with said disposable pill counting tray having a hooked end; said disposable pill counting tray including a folding side wall to define an area for said pill.
 10. A disposable pill system as in claim 1, wherein said folding sidewall is outwardly sloping.
 11. A disposable pill system as in claim 2, wherein said folding sidewall is outwardly sloping to accept another disposable pill counting tray to form a nested pair.
 12. A disposable pill system as in claim 1, wherein said disposable pill counting tray is substantially U-shaped.
 13. A disposable pill system as in claim 12, wherein said U-shaped pill counting tray includes a first arm for a staging area for said pill
 14. A disposable pill system as in claim 13, wherein said U-shaped pill counting tray includes a second arm for forming a dispensing area for said pill.
 15. A disposable pill system as in claim 13, wherein said second arm extends beyond said first arm.
 16. A disposable pill system as in claim 9, wherein said pill counting tray is formed from cardboard or molded plastic.
 17. A disposable pill system as in claim 9, wherein said system further includes a tray cover to cover said pill counting tray.
 18. A disposable pill system as in claim 17, wherein said tray cover is formed from molded plastic.
 19. A disposable pill system as in claim 17, wherein said tray cover is disposable.
 20. A pill counting device to hold a pill as in claim 1, wherein said pill counting tray is formed from molded plastic. 